To Hell with That! or the Life of Oliver Gyles Longley, C.B.E., M.C.

Constantly reflective and amusing, Gyles Longley reveals a life more influenced by the unexpected than seems reasonable. After a happy childhood and adolescence in Kent, his working life began in 1936. Crystal Palace burned down, and the next day Gyles started work in London with the company from which he would years later retire as the Managing Director of its business in France. In between we read of his wartime experience as a soldier and officer, his fulfilling professional career with Gestetner, the decades of public service and, above all, of his long years of happiness with Ginette. As Gyles explains, the story's title reflects the realisation of his eighteen year old self that his future employment was in his own hands. In his words, 'someone with little baggage can - with luck - end up with a few Louis Vuitton pieces'.